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Rhodes v. State
Citations: 126 So. 3d 74; 2013 Miss. App. LEXIS 716; 2013 WL 5789362Docket: No. 2010-KA-01580-COA
Court: Court of Appeals of Mississippi; October 29, 2013; Mississippi; State Appellate Court
Dexter Rhodes was convicted of conspiracy to commit armed robbery and sentenced to five years, with two and a half years to serve followed by two and a half years of suspended probation contingent on completion of supervised probation. After his post-trial motions were denied, Rhodes appealed, represented by the Indigent Appeals Division of the Office of the State Public Defender. His counsel filed a brief in line with Lindsey v. State, stating no arguable issues for appeal and informed Rhodes of his right to file a pro se brief, which he did, claiming he was offered immunity for implicating others. The facts revealed that on July 10, 2003, Rhodes was involved with Eric Ford, Dwayne Sharp, and Edward Kyser in a robbery of chemicals from Helena Chemical Company, which included a shooting of an employee. Rhodes, who had prior employment with the company, facilitated the robbery by providing information and assistance to the perpetrators, and he was later arrested along with them. The court outlined the procedures established in Lindsey for cases where appellate counsel finds no arguable issues. Counsel must file a compliant brief, certify thorough examination of the record, inform the defendant of their findings, and advise them of their right to file a pro se brief. If any arguable issues arise during the appeal process, the court may request supplemental briefing from counsel. The appellate court will then review the case on its merits before making a decision. After review, the court found no errors in Rhodes's case and affirmed the conviction. Rhodes’s attorney conducted a thorough review of the case records, searching for any viable issues for appeal, but found none. The review included an examination of the arrest circumstances, right to counsel, trial transcript, trial court rulings, prosecutorial conduct, jury instructions, evidence exhibits, sentencing law misrepresentation, indictment documents, potential ineffective assistance of counsel, and other reviewable matters. Rhodes’s counsel requested an additional forty days for Rhodes to file a pro se brief and informed him of the lack of arguable issues. Rhodes subsequently filed a pro se brief claiming he was offered immunity related to his statements on armed robbery, but provided no supporting evidence. After reviewing the record, the court found no reversible errors and affirmed the conviction of conspiracy to commit armed robbery, sentencing Rhodes to five years with two and a half years to serve and two and a half years suspended, contingent on completing supervised probation and paying $500 to the Mississippi Crime Victims’ Compensation Fund. All appeal costs were assessed to Washington County. The decision was concurred by several justices.